I'm also in my 30's; we had records and tapes growing up, and I think for most non-audiophiles, it was the cassette that sent the LP into suspended animation, not the CD. We didn't get a CD player until 1989 or so.
One year I got a new shelf system to replace my ailing but great hand-me-down semi-separates (receiver, tape deck). It had a 3-disc CD changer. I took it to college, and my second year I bought a cheapo plastic TT from radio shack and ran it through this shelf system. I'll never forget the shock of that moment, that the vinyl sounded worlds better than the CDs. It sounded "unwrapped," if you will. So I always had a TT around, and a few records. I upgraded that table to a technics from the local used vinyl hut, which lasted me for years trouble-free (now spins at stepmom's house with a new stanton D70 stylus).
After getting married I started getting more interested in sound quality. I bought a Dual 1242 on CL for $20, sank another $80 into fixing it up and a new cart, found a broken NAD 3020 at the local junk shop for $10, had it fixed. The headshell on the dual broke, got an AR-XA, and well, that's a story for another day, but boy, it's been downhill from there...
One year I got a new shelf system to replace my ailing but great hand-me-down semi-separates (receiver, tape deck). It had a 3-disc CD changer. I took it to college, and my second year I bought a cheapo plastic TT from radio shack and ran it through this shelf system. I'll never forget the shock of that moment, that the vinyl sounded worlds better than the CDs. It sounded "unwrapped," if you will. So I always had a TT around, and a few records. I upgraded that table to a technics from the local used vinyl hut, which lasted me for years trouble-free (now spins at stepmom's house with a new stanton D70 stylus).
After getting married I started getting more interested in sound quality. I bought a Dual 1242 on CL for $20, sank another $80 into fixing it up and a new cart, found a broken NAD 3020 at the local junk shop for $10, had it fixed. The headshell on the dual broke, got an AR-XA, and well, that's a story for another day, but boy, it's been downhill from there...